View source for Rooswijk

{{Short description|Dutch East India Company ship}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2017}}
{{Inline citations|date=August 2015}}
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|Ship name= ''Rooswijk''
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|Ship fate=Sunk on 9 January 1740
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The '''''Rooswijk''''' ({{IPA|nl|ˈroːsʋɛik}}) was a ship belonging to the VOC ([[Dutch East India Company]]) that, according to recent, non-contemporary, news reports, sank in 1740.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/science/2017/aug/18/treasure-and-intrigue-scientists-unravel-story-of-1740-kent-shipwreck|title=Treasure and intrigue: scientists unravel story of 1740 Kent shipwreck|first=Maev|last=Kennedy|authorlink=Maev Kennedy|work=[[The Guardian]]|location=London|date=2010-08-18}}</ref> The wreck is a Protected Wreck managed by [[Historic England]].

==Construction and service ==
According to the recent reports, the ''Rooswijk'' was built for the VOC "Chamber of Amsterdam" in 1737. On 9 January 1740, during its second journey to the east, it sank on the sand bank of [[Goodwin Sands]], about 8&nbsp;km from the British mainland. There were no known survivors. At the time, it was captained by Daniel Ronzieres. By examining archive documents, researchers have been able to identify 19 of the 237 crewmen on board, including: Gerrit Hendrick Huffelman, responsible for providing medical care; Thomas Huijdekoper; a 19-year-old on his first voyage; and Pieter Calmer, a sailor who had previously survived the Westerwijk shipwreck.<ref>{{cite news |title=New evidence reveals Goodwin Sands shipwreck's secrets |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-kent-44925445 |agency=BBC News |date=July 25, 2018}}</ref>

==Wreck==
The ''Rooswijk'' was discovered on the Goodwin Sands by an amateur diver in 2004. It lies in about {{convert|24|m|ft}} of water at the northeast end of Kellett Gut.

In December 2005, it was made public that between May and September of that year a team led by Rex Cowan had recovered some of the ship and its contents. This was done in secrecy to avoid attracting looters. Artifacts recovered included approximately one thousand bars of silver, gold coins, and a mustard jar. When the VOC was disbanded in 1798, its possessions fell to the [[Batavian Republic]], the [[legal successor (state)|legal successor]] of which is the current Dutch State, which therefore is entitled to the objects from the ''Rooswijk''. They were presented to Junior Minister of Finance [[Joop Wijn]] in [[Plymouth]] on 11 December 2005.

The type of coins recovered were several hundred Mexican silver cobs of the 1720s and early 1730s and transitional ''[[Klippe (coin)|klippe]]s'' of 1733-1734, as well as many more hundreds of "pillar dollars" and a smattering of cobs from other mints. However, archaeologists have determined that up to half of the money on board was intended for illegal trade, as they were not part of the sanctioned cargo. Many of the discovered coins were also made with small deliberate holes, which suggest that crewmen were sewing them into their clothes to smuggle to the Dutch East Indies.<ref>{{cite web |title=New Evidence Tells a Tale of Smuggling and Reveals Who Was On Board, During Major Shipwreck Excavation |url=https://historicengland.org.uk/whats-new/news/rooswijk-excavation-reveals-new-evidence-of-smuggling-and-crew-identity/ |website=Historic England |date=July 25, 2018}}</ref> Crewmen were able to make a profit off of buying silver in the Netherlands and then selling it in the Dutch East Indies, where there were no silver mines. Despite being illegal, the VOC tolerated the smuggling because the profit benefited both the smugglers and the company.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Marchini |first1=Lucia |title=Rescuing the Rooswijk |journal=Current World Archaeology |date=December 5, 2017 |volume=86 |url=https://www.world-archaeology.com/features/rescuing-the-rooswijk/}}</ref>

After the wreck, the floor timbers collapsed causing the decks of the ship to fall on top of each other. This provides a snapshot of the physical and social aspects of life on board in three layers: the top layer consists of the officers’ dining room; the middle layer comprises the constable’s cabin, containing 50 muskets; and the bottom layer includes the cartridge locker and gun deck, containing [[Chain shot|bar]] and [[round shot]].<ref>{{cite web |last1=Dunkley |first1=Mark |title=Rooswijk Conservation Statement & Management Plan |url=https://content.historicengland.org.uk/content/docs/listing/mgmtplan-rooswijkaug09.pdf |website=English Heritage |page=6 |date=October 13, 2008}}</ref>

The 2005 salvage operation has led to criticism from heritage organisations worldwide, as some of the international principles concerning the protection of  archaeological heritage ([[Valletta Treaty]] 1992, [[UNESCO Convention on the Protection of the Underwater Cultural Heritage]] 2001) were ignored.

In 2007, the ''Rooswijk'' was designated as a protected wreck site under [[Protection of Wrecks Act 1973|UK legislation]] which prevented further salvage work taking place. Statutory Instrument 2007/61 defines the restricted area as a circle of radius 150&nbsp;m centred on 51° 16.443' N 01° 34.537' E.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://historicengland.org.uk/listing/the-list/list-entry/1000085|title=The Rooswijk - 1000085 {{!}} Historic England|website=historicengland.org.uk|language=en|access-date=2019-11-20}}</ref>  The Netherlands changed their policy in that same year, making it impossible to issue further salvage rights for historic shipwrecks. The ship's remains lie at a depth of some 25 metres and are owned by the Dutch Government.<ref>{{cite web |title=UCi — The Magazine for Underwater Professionals |url=http://www.under-water.co.uk/diving-into-history-on-the-rooswijk/ |website=under-water.co.uk |accessdate=22 November 2019 |date=March–April 2019}}</ref>

In 2016 the wreck was placed on [[Historic England]]’s ''[[Heritage at risk|Heritage at Risk Register]]''. The ''Rooswijk'' was at high risk due to persistent erosion, shipworm attacking the wood and the high threat of unauthorised diving. RCE and Historic England undertook a monitoring survey of the site which concluded further work was necessary. Excavation began in 2017 led by [[MSDS Marine]]. During excavation projects, new discoveries were taken to a warehouse in [[Ramsgate]] for recording and initial preservation. Further analysis and conservation took place in a Historic England storage facility before ultimately being returned to the Netherlands.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Krakowka |first1=Kathryn |title=Rescuing the Rooswijk |journal=Current Archaeology |date=September 20, 2017 |volume=331 |url=https://www.archaeology.co.uk/articles/rescuing-the-rooswijk.htm}}</ref>  Amongst the finds were a cauldron, a pan and a lid made from copper alloy.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Conservation of copper alloy artefacts from the Dutch East Indiaman the Rooswijk - Historic England Research Report 36/2018|url=https://research.historicengland.org.uk/Report.aspx?i=16039&ru=/Results.aspx?p=1&n=10&rn=36&ry=2018&ns=1|last=Kuiper|first=Elisabeth|date=2018|website=research.historicengland.org.uk|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=2020-05-04}}</ref>

==References==
{{reflist}}
* [http://www.sedwickcoins.com/shipwreck_histories/rooswijk.htm General information about the wreck]
* "Schatten VOC-schip De Rooswijk overgedragen aan Nederland" (12 December 2005). ''Trouw'' (Dutch newspaper), p.&nbsp;3.
* Algra, Wybo (13 December 2005). "Schatten uit een varend VOC-dorp". ''Trouw'' (Dutch newspaper), p.&nbsp;1 and 5.
* [http://www.culture.gov.uk/Reference_library/Press_notices/archive_2007/dcms006_07.htm Press Release from Dept Culture Media and Sport on the designation of the Rooswijk], retrieved 13-01-2007

* The [[National Geographic Channel]]'s ''Drain the Oceans'' has an episode about salvaging the treasure from the sunken ship in S1 E5 entitled "Sunken Treasures".

==External links==
* [https://historicengland.org.uk/sitesearch?searchType=site&search=rooswijk Historic England] has detailed archaeological reports and other documents on its website.
* {{NHLE|num=1000085}}

{{coord |51|16|27|N|01|34|32|E|display=title}}
[[Category:2004 archaeological discoveries]]
[[Category:Age of Sail merchant ships of the Dutch Republic]]
[[Category:Individual sailing vessels]]
[[Category:Maritime incidents in 1740]]
[[Category:Protected wrecks of England]]
[[Category:Ships of the Dutch East India Company]]
[[Category:Shipwrecks in the Downs]]
[[Category:Shipwrecks in the English Channel]]
[[Category:1740 in England]]